Just a quick question. I use Directv Stream as provider. I know that when I use their app. I have to have activity or it’ll close the stream after 4 hours. I would think the other services have something similar but don’t know. Is it possible to send a command every couple hrs to defeat the “Are you watching screen”?
For those wanting a hdmi encoder with ir blaster for a STB instead of adb commands for an android box - I’d say the easiest way would be a Hauppauge HD PVR2 1512 (not gaming edition)
Can output 1080i60/720p60 or 1080p30 and when set up through NextPVR as the M3U backend, you can then bring that m3u into channels and have nextpvr doing the channel switching/ir blasting, while using channels far superior app and video player.
Just a note that only the windows version of NextPVR seems to support hdmi encoders like the Hauppauge hd pvr2 etc
Edit: also need to be mindful this device does not support hdcp so would need a cheap hdmi splitter/device that can strip the hdcp
I have one of those units now. I'm struggling with the settings. Would you mind sharing how you setup yours? Here is how mine is currently setup.
Also, how did you setup the source in channels?
Any reason you chose H.264 instead of H.265? At least on my box, these settings seem to be working well:
I was switching those around as I was flailing about trying to get it working. I was able at one point to see in Channels a snippet of a video by using the http://192.168.0.116/ts/1_0 that they list as the TS Preview URL.
"Chromecast with Google TV" ($29 for HD, $49 for 4K) is a good device choice for this. It's available just about everywhere. The HD version should be fine for this application.
With the few HDMI encoders I tested, I found that h265 significantly increased cpu load and latency. As such, it might not be worth it. Especially on a local network where the bitrate reduction won't have much value. Depending on the playback device it might also trigger a transcode to h264 on playback. IMO, it's worth at least playing around with both options when you get to a point where you are optimizing things.
It might be helpful to first get the HDMI encoder running outside of Channels DVR.
In VLC Media Player click file, open network, paste that "TS Preview URL" into the URL box, and then click "open". If the video output from your streaming device appears here then the streaming box is working correctly and you can move on to the Channels config.
You should change the frame rate (FPS) to 60 in the encoder config though.
On the main 'system setting page' change system mode to '1*1080p@50/60'; this will allow 60fps under the 'video' tab.
As others have mentioned, test with vlc:
Thanks @turtletank and @jad3675. Made that change and got it working in VLC. It now works in a custom channel selecting Stream Format-->MPEG-TS and using the preview URL which in my case is http://192.168.0.116/ts/1_0.
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I found that issue as well with H.265. Especially for commercial skipping took way too long. I ended up using H.264.
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Does the referenced encoder bypass/strip HDCP? Or is another device required?
So I've been testing settings and different scenarios. Manually selecting a channel from the Guide or On Now to play live works, most of the time. Not always though, and when channel surfing I'll either get "503" or a "connection to the HDHomeRun was lost. Press play to try again" error. And pressing play to try again, even multiple times, doesn't work. Exiting back to the Guide or On Now, and manually selecting a channel though, eventually does work. I've put these channels in a Collection of their own so I know to interface with them differently.
And thankfully, recordings thus far, tuned into by the server, seem to be proceeding without a hitch. I did change from H.265 back to H.264 on Encoder #1 due to the comskip speed advice, mentioned above, thanks! The PQ actually looks a bit sharper to me, H.265 looked a little soft, but that could be just my imagination.
All things considered though, things are working pretty well in CDVR as I get it dialed in... enough that I've started to add more than just the NBCU channels to the mix. YouTube TV has some other channels that never had TVE compatibility, channels like MTV Classic, NewsNation, and BBC News, so I've started adding some of them in too.
What other TVE holdouts (or externally launchable apps, with exclusive streaming content, specifically with mappable guide data) have you all found worth integrating via these HDMI encoders?
FWIW here's my current Custom Channel text:
#EXTM3U
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="NBC",NBC
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/nbc
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="MSNBC",MSNBC
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/msnbc
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id=E!" tvc-guide-stationid="61812" tvg-shift="+3",E!
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/e!
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="Bravo" tvc-guide-stationid="58625",Bravo
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/bravo
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="Oxygen",Oxygen
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/oxygen
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="USA", tvc-guide-stationid="58452" tvg-shift="+3",USA
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/usa
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="SyFy" tvg-shift="+3",SyFy
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/syfy
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="CNBC",CNBC
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/cnbc
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="Golf",Golf
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/golf
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="NFL",NFL Network
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/nfl
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="NewsNation",NewsNation
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/newsnation
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="MTV Classic" tvg-shift="+9",MTV Classic
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/mtvclassic
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="BBC News",BBC News
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/bbcnews
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="Smithsonian" tvc-guide-stationid="65799", Smithsonian Channel
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/smithsonian
And here is my current bmitune.sh config:
#!/bin/bash
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
PRIME1="input keyevent 19 19 19 19; sleep 1; input keyevent 21 21 21; sleep 1; input keyevent 22; sleep 1; input keyevent 23; sleep 1"
PRIME2="input keyevent 19; sleep 1"
PRIME3="input keyevent --longpress 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67 67"
SEARCH1="input keyevent 66; sleep 2"
SEARCH2="input keyevent 66"
#NBC
if [ $1 = "nbc" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/9iwfkw-dMAw?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#MSNBC
if [ $1 = "msnbc" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/q6bWEVqhP8o?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#E!
if [ $1 = "e!" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/ILTrUfLFrHI?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#Bravo
if [ $1 = "bravo" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/xNk2Sv4t4Tc?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#Oxygen
if [ $1 = "oxygen" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/v4upAc0UExk?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#USA
if [ $1 = "usa" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/DJ7m0fdLKEY?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#SYFY
if [ $1 = "syfy" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/2_WogcoZ1cY?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#CNBC
if [ $1 = "cnbc" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/GIBoX-XF5i0?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#Golf
if [ $1 = "golf" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/XK34g7QRvGk?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#NFL Network
if [ $1 = "nfl" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/_pYg9qMKKIA?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#NFL Network
if [ $1 = "newsnation" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/ZIzM3eNrylg?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#MTV Classic
if [ $1 = "mtvclassic" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/isxl2N52bUQ?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
#AMC+
if [ $1 = "bbcnews" ];then
HOME="input keyevent KEYCODE_HOME; sleep 1"
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d https://tv.youtube.com/watch/g5BmB1qXulc?onboard=1 -n com.google.android.youtube.tvunplugged/com.google.android.apps.youtube.tvunplugged.activity.MainActivity
fi
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It takes the input and presents it as a ts stream that can be used in VLC or channels.
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So you're not using an HDMI "splitter" in between your streaming box and the IP Encoder?
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I'm not, and HDCP doesn't appear to interfering with anything.
I will be adding a splitter soon to have simultaneous output though, which should bring back native output from, and control of, the same dongle to my TV's 4th HDMI input, where it was originally: https://amzn.to/3WtDRfy
As to be expected, I think the "tuner" management in this proof-of-concept is nowhere near as robust as it is for real HDHomerun hardware.
Even though a tuning request is coming from the same device the "tuner" cannot be used until the lock from the original stream is released. I think this is what causes the errors when quickly surfing though channels. As you noticed, for now it's best to just be patient and wait a bit before launching a new "hdmi" channel.
Agreed, just sharing real-world experience with this experiment so far, so others know what to expect, before buying hardware and diving in.
I'm having some problems with the channel guide mappings though. I handled them all manually. I'm unsure why some have numbers to the left of their logo (70, 106, 91, 24, 49, 108) and others don't.
Most work fine, but E!, Bravo and USA are off by 3 hours from the original guide that I see on YTTV, and I can't figure out how to fix or adjust them. When I search for a zip code and assign a local cable company, and then refresh, I notice later that added provider is removed.
I tried different matches for the same channel, and then refresh and wait a while, but none seem to stick or ever display with the proper guide data for what's playing now. Also, searching for "E" or "E!" on "Search All Lineups" just spins and spins, no selections offered.`
I then tried adding tvg-shift="+3" (and also tvg-shift="-3") to the M3U for these channels, refreshed and waited for guide data to fully repopulate but it didn't make any changes.
#EXTINF:-1 channel-id="Bravo" tvc-guide-placeholders="86402", tvg-shift="+3, Bravo
http://10.0.1.21:7654/play/tuner/bravo
What am I doing wrong? And do I need "tvc-guide-placeholders" at all? This tag just has successive numbers that start at 86400, but I'm not sure why or if that's actually necessary in this context.
Any feedback or ideas appreciated.
2 Likes
Shouldn't that be tvg-shift="+3" ?
can't have a comma in here
this is normal and harmless
this is confusing but normal. you don't need to add more providers any more now that there's a Search All
here are the station ids for for those three est vs pst
// "usa", "58452",
// "usap", "74030",
// "e", "61812",
// "ep", "91579",
// "bravo", "58625",
// "bravop", "73994",Great, thanks!
I also found the answer to this question:
Answered fully here:
When your custom channel has no guide data, Channels will create airings for your channel. This way you can record them. It will even create special titles, series IDs, and program IDs based on the time slot so that you can make a Series Pass for them. By default it creates them with 1 hour durations. But you can control this yourself by providing their duration in seconds.
tvc-guide-placeholders: Duration of the placeholder. comma delimited. example (2 hours): "7200"
You can set the value to "false" to tell Channels to not make any placeholder airings at all. Setting the value to 24 hours or longer ("86400") will create 24 hour airings, but will drop the extra titles it creates for these airings.
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